Winter family, deep and cool

Deep Winter (dark winter) color palette

Dark, cool and built for contrast.

Updated October 2026 · By the Hue & Shape team

Not sure you are a Deep Winter?

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Deep winter, often called dark winter, describes coloring that is dark first and cool second. The hair is usually deep brown to black with no red or gold showing in daylight, the eyes are dark brown, black-brown, deep hazel or a dark cool green, and the skin can be anything from porcelain to very deep as long as the base reads cool or neutral-cool rather than golden.

What sets the season apart is the weight of the features. Brows and lashes are strong, the hair frames the face like a dark line, and the whites of the eyes look bright against the iris. Pale, dusty or warm colors sit on top of that coloring instead of joining it, which is why a deep winter often looks tired in camel and striking in black.

The palette answers with depth and a cool base: black, deep navy, burgundy, emerald, sapphire and plum, lifted by a few icy lights worn as contrast rather than as the main color.

Palette at a glance

Winter family · Silver, platinum and white gold.

Also called dark winter.

The palette

Deep Winter color palette: 36 colors with hex codes

36 colors in six groups. Hex codes are for screens; fabric and print will vary.

Neutrals

Black#141414
Deep Navy#1D2A44
Charcoal#2C2F33
Graphite#4A4E57
Silver Gray#B9C0C8
Icy White#F4F5F6

Lights

Icy Pink#F2DCE6
Icy Blue#DBE6F2
Icy Lilac#E4DCEF
Icy Mint#DCEFE8
Ice Aqua#D6EEEF
Frost Gray#CFD4DA

Mid-tones

Steel Blue#46648A
Cobalt#2C4EA0
Slate Teal#2F6870
Amethyst#64408C
Spruce Green#24604C
Graphite Blue#3D4A5E

Deeps

Burgundy#5A1F2E
Emerald#0F5A45
Sapphire#1F3F7A
Plum#4A2440
Deep Teal#14494D
Aubergine#3A1F3D

Accents

Royal Purple#4F2A91
Peacock#00677F
Jade#00775F
True Blue#1B3C9E
Electric Teal#00798A
Violet Ink#3E2A6E

Reds and pinks

Crimson#8F1F33
Fuchsia#A8246A
Berry#7A1F4A
Blue Red#B01E34
Cranberry#6E1A2F
Raspberry#9C1F55

On the map

Where deep winter sits among the 12 seasons

On the map, deep winter sits at the bottom of the cool half: warmth -0.5, depth 0.9 and clarity 0.72. Only deep autumn is as deep, but it sits at +0.6 on the warmth axis, the axis the free test weights most, so the two are far apart in the tool even though people confuse them in a mirror. The nearest anchor by the tool's own distance is bright winter, which shares the cool base and most of the clarity but sits much lighter. Cool winter is the next winter along, cooler and a step lighter, and soft summer is the closest season outside the family.

Plotted from the anchors the free color test matches against. Larger dots are clearer, brighter seasons; smaller dots are softer. How the anchors are used

Recognize it

How to tell if you are a deep winter

Your natural hair is dark brown or black, and in sunlight it shows a blue or neutral sheen rather than red or gold.
Your eyes are dark: brown-black, deep brown, dark hazel or a cool dark green, and the whites look clean against them.
Black near your face looks natural, while a pale beige or a camel coat makes your skin look flat or slightly gray.
Silver and white gold look polished on you; bright yellow gold looks like it belongs to someone else.
Your brows and lashes are strong enough that light makeup can disappear on you.
A tan, if you get one, deepens the skin without turning it golden.

A three-step drape check at home

1
Stand facing a window with no makeup and your hair pulled back. Hold Black under your chin, then a camel or tan fabric. On a deep winter the black sharpens the jaw and the eyes; the camel makes the skin around the mouth look sallow.
2
Next compare Burgundy with a rust or brick red. Burgundy should look rich and quiet; rust should push the skin toward orange or make shadows under the eyes look darker.
3
Finish with Icy White against cream. The icy white should brighten the whites of your eyes. If cream looks better on you, test the deep autumn palette next.

Not sure? The free test reads your season from a photo and seven questions, and the photo never leaves your device.

Find my season

Side by side

Deep winter vs deep autumn (dark winter vs dark autumn)

These two share the darkest coloring on the wheel, so the depth test tells you nothing. The question is what color the darkness is. A deep winter's hair reads blue-black or espresso with no warmth in the sun, and the skin goes gray or sallow next to orange-based browns. A deep autumn's hair glints copper or chestnut, and the same browns look like part of the face.

From the winter side, the giveaway is how you wear a dark neutral. Black, charcoal and deep navy look finished on a deep winter. Chocolate brown and olive look muddy, as if the outfit had been washed too often. Jewel tones with a blue base, such as sapphire and emerald, carry better than their warm cousins, teal-green and pine.

The Deep Autumn palette

Deep Winter

Black #141414
Burgundy #5a1f2e
Sapphire #1f3f7a
Emerald #0f5a45
Plum #4a2440
Icy White #f4f5f6

Black, Burgundy, Sapphire, Emerald, Plum, Icy White

Deep Autumn

Black Coffee #2b201a
Mahogany #6b2f28
Forest #2f4a35
Gold #b98a2e
Deep Teal #27504f
Cream #efe3cd

Black Coffee, Mahogany, Forest, Gold, Deep Teal, Cream

The test that separates them

Hold true black and dark chocolate brown under your chin in daylight. If black makes your eyes look brighter and brown makes the skin look dull, you are on the winter side. If brown looks warm and black looks harsh, read the deep autumn page.

Side by side

Deep winter vs cool winter

Both are winters, both want a cool base and both handle black. The difference is where the coloring leans. Cool winter is defined by coolness, with skin that shows pink or blue undertones and colors that can be bright and icy at once. Deep winter is defined by depth, and its undertone is often closer to neutral-cool, so a little softness in the darkest colors is welcome.

In practice a deep winter does best when the darkest color is nearest the face: burgundy, aubergine, deep teal. A cool winter can put a clear royal blue or icy pink at the face and leave the dark colors further down. A deep winter in a big field of icy pink can look pale and a little lost.

The Cool Winter palette

Deep Winter

Aubergine #3a1f3d
Deep Teal #14494d
Burgundy #5a1f2e
Charcoal #2c2f33
Cobalt #2c4ea0
Icy Pink #f2dce6

Aubergine, Deep Teal, Burgundy, Charcoal, Cobalt, Icy Pink

Cool Winter

Icy Pink #f3d7e3
Periwinkle #5f7fd6
True Red #c8102e
Cool Turquoise #1fa3b5
Silver #c4c9cf
Pure White #ffffff

Icy Pink, Periwinkle, True Red, Cool Turquoise, Silver, Pure White

The test that separates them

Try Icy Pink as a whole top, then as a small scarf over Black. If the full icy top washes you out but the scarf looks sharp, you are deep winter. If the full icy top looks bright and clean, cool winter fits better.

Leave out

Deep winter worst colors

Each one with the reason it fights this coloring and a color from the palette that does the same job.

Camel
The classic warm neutral, and the one most likely to make deep winter skin look tired and the hair look dull.
Wear instead: Charcoal
Mustard
Warm yellow with a muddy base fights the cool undertone and turns the skin sallow around the mouth.
Wear instead: Cobalt
Peach
Warm and pale at once, so it neither matches the depth nor the undertone; the face looks drained.
Wear instead: Icy Pink
Warm Beige
A dusty light warm color that softens the strong contrast between hair and skin until it reads as blur.
Wear instead: Silver Gray
Rust
The depth is right but the orange base pulls the skin toward orange and deepens shadows under the eyes.
Wear instead: Burgundy
Olive Drab
A yellowed, grayed green that makes dark cool hair look flat instead of glossy.
Wear instead: Emerald
Dusty Rose
Grayed and mid-light, it sits in the gap between your darks and your lights, where this coloring has no strength.
Wear instead: Raspberry
Orange
Bright and warm, it competes with the face and shows up any redness in cool skin.
Wear instead: Blue Red

Wearing it

Deep winter outfits and clothing: six combinations

Work
Deep Navy, Icy White, Burgundy
A navy suit with an icy white shirt carries the contrast; keep burgundy to a tie, scarf or one thin knit.
Evening
Black, Emerald
An emerald dress or jacket over black; a two-to-one split, with the jewel tone taking the larger share near the face.
Casual
Charcoal, Cobalt, Black
Charcoal jeans and a cobalt sweater, with black shoes or a black belt to close the outfit at the bottom.
Summer
Ice Aqua, Deep Teal
Light ice aqua on top with deep teal shorts or skirt, so the light color sits at the face and the depth stays below.
Winter
Aubergine, Graphite, Silver Gray
An aubergine coat over graphite, with a silver gray scarf as the only light touch near the chin.
Accessories
Black, Crimson
Black leather for bags and shoes; one crimson accent, such as a lip, a bag or a watch strap, is enough.

High contrast, cool base

Black with icy white, navy with silver, burgundy with plum. The palette lives on the gap between dark and light, so avoid mid-tone outfits that sit in the middle.

Dark is the neutral

Black, navy and charcoal are the wardrobe. That is a real advantage: the basics are easy to find and they all work together.

Keep warm colors out of the neckline

A camel coat is a classic, but it will look better over a cool outfit than directly against a deep winter face.

Hair

Deep Winter hair color

Shades that suit

Blue-black. Matches the coolest natural deep winter hair and keeps the contrast with icy whites at its strongest.
Soft black. A black with a slight brown base, easier to keep than blue-black and kinder on fair skin.
Cool espresso. Very dark brown with no red; the safest choice if your natural color is dark brown.
Black cherry. Dark brown or black with a burgundy cast, which repeats the palette's reds without adding warmth.
Deep plum. For a visible change: a violet-red so dark it reads black indoors and plum in the sun.

Shades that fight it

Golden or honey highlights. They add yellow to hair whose depth and coolness are what frame the face.
Copper and auburn. Orange-red brings out redness in cool skin and looks dyed against dark cool eyes.
Ash or platinum blonde. The drop in depth removes the contrast, so the face loses definition and the brows look painted on.

Makeup

Deep Winter makeup: base, cheek, eyes and lips

Base and foundation

Choose a shade with a cool or neutral label (often C or N in a shade code) and test it on the jaw, not the hand, in daylight. Let it sit five minutes, because many foundations darken and warm as they oxidize; if it turns orange on your skin, go one step cooler. Skip bronzer with an orange cast and use a cool brown contour if you contour at all.

Cheek

Berry and cool rose blush suit the depth. Apply a little more than feels natural: on strong features a sheer wash disappears.

Berry blush #9C3A5C
Cool rose blush #B5506E

Eyes

Charcoal, navy and plum liners and shadows define the eye without warming it. Silver or gunmetal works as a highlight; leave copper and bronze for the autumns.

Charcoal liner #2C2F33
Plum shadow #4A2440
Gunmetal #5A5E66

Lips

This palette carries a strong lip better than almost any other. A blue-based red, wine or deep berry looks deliberate; a pale nude can look like the lips are missing.

Blue-red lipstick #A3162E
Wine #6E1A2F
Deep berry #7A1F4A

The base

Metals, jewelry and wardrobe neutrals

Silver, platinum and white gold. Gold should be pale and small, or antique and dark rather than bright yellow.

Silver, platinum and white gold match the cool base. Darker metals suit the depth: gunmetal, blackened silver and oxidized finishes look natural on deep winter where bright polished yellow gold can look loud. If you love gold, choose a pale or antique tone in a small size.

For stones, think of the palette's deeps: garnet, amethyst, sapphire and emerald, set in white metal. Pearls work best in white or gray rather than cream.

Black
Deep Navy
Charcoal
Graphite
Silver Gray
Icy White

Every depth

Deep Winter on fair, medium and deep skin

Fair skin

Fair skin with very dark hair is the highest-contrast version of deep winter. It leans on the neutrals and deeps groups, with Icy White and Icy Blue as the lights; the mid-tones can look heavy if worn in large blocks.

Medium skin

Medium skin with dark hair reads deep and slightly softer. Sapphire, emerald and burgundy look strongest, and the reds and pinks group works well at the face. Icy colors are best as small accents against a dark base.

Deep skin

On deep skin the darkest neutrals can merge with the skin, so jewel tones and the brighter accents carry the outfit: Royal Purple, Electric Teal, Fuchsia and Icy White near the face. Black still works, especially with a bright lip or a light collar.

Questions

Deep Winter questions

Is deep winter the same as dark winter?

Yes. Deep winter and dark winter are two names for the same season: cool coloring where depth is the strongest trait, sitting between true winter and the autumn family's deepest season.

What are the worst colors for a deep winter?

Warm, light or dusty colors: camel, mustard, peach, warm beige, rust, olive drab, dusty rose and orange. Each one either warms the skin or fills the gap between your darks and lights with a color that has no strength.

How do I tell deep winter from deep autumn?

Compare black and chocolate brown at your face in daylight. Deep winters brighten in black and look dull in brown; deep autumns look warm in brown and harsh in black. Hair that glints red or copper in sun also points to autumn.

Can a deep winter wear brown?

A very dark, cool brown close to espresso works, mostly away from the face. Warm chocolate and camel are the browns to skip. Charcoal or deep navy usually do the same job better.

What hair color suits a deep winter?

Blue-black, soft black, cool espresso, black cherry and deep plum. Avoid golden highlights, copper, auburn and pale ash blonde, which either warm the hair or remove the depth that frames the face.

Should a deep winter wear white or cream?

Icy white. Cream reads yellow next to cool dark coloring and softens the contrast. If optic white feels stark, Icy White or Frost Gray is a gentler option in the same family.

Can a deep winter wear pastels?

Icy pastels with a cool base, such as Icy Pink and Ice Aqua, work as accents or as a shirt under a dark jacket. Warm pastels like peach and butter yellow do not.

How we measure. The seasons on this site come from fixed positions for warmth, depth and clarity, and the free test matches you to the nearest one. Read the method